Santa Margarita Watershed
The Santa Margarita River watershed encompasses approximately 750 square miles in northern San Diego and southwestern Riverside counties. The watershed contains a variety of nearly intact habitats including chaparral-covered hillsides, riparian woodlands, and coastal marshes. Of the total watershed area, approximately 27% is within San Diego County.
The Santa Margarita River is formed near the City of Temecula in Riverside County at the confluence of the Temecula and Murrieta creek systems. Once formed, the majority of the Santa Margarita River main stem flows within San Diego County through unincorporated areas, the community of Fallbrook, and the Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.
The lower river and estuary have largely escaped the development typical of other regions of coastal Southern California, and are therefore able to support a relative abundance of functional habitats and wildlife. On the other hand, the upper watershed basin lies in Riverside County, one of the fastest growing areas in California. In the absence of effective planning measures, this rapid development will likely exasperate surface water quality problems.
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| Hydrologic Areas: |
Ysidora, DeLuz, Murrieta, Auld, Pechanga, Wilson, Cave Rocks, Aguanga, Oakgrove
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| Major Water Bodies: |
Santa Margarita River, Temecula Creek, Murrieta Creek, Santa Margarita Lagoon, Vail Lake, Skinner Reservoir, and Diamond Valley Lake Reservoir
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If you would like to select one of these major water bodies as your collection site, follow these instructions to get the information you will need for the registration form:
- Go to iTouchMap.com.
- If possible, enter the zip code of the area where you are collecting your sample in the "Address" field at the top of the page. If you don't know the zip code, enter the name of the watershed or city and state. Then, click the "Go" button. The comic book bubble will show the latitude and longitude on the map on that same page.
- The first number is the latitude. The second is the longitude. These are the numbers you'll need to enter into the Collection Site Information section of the registration form.
The following is an example screen shot of longitude and latitude results:
If you need assistance in selecting a collection site, please contact us. We'll be happy to help you find a site that's as close to your group' or school's location as possible.
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